If you have a bunch of variable rate Federal student loans, July 1st could be your lucky day. July 1st is when the interest rates on Federal student loans changes, and one financial id expert is predicting they’re going to drop to “historic lows.” What this means is you will have an opportunity to consolidate your variable rate Federal student loans together at the new, lower, rate, and save yourself some cash. How much?
stafford
Sallie Mae Stops Student Loan Consolidation, Will No Longer Pay Origination Fees On Stafford Loans
By 4.15.08
Consolidation loans are no longer profitable for Sallie Mae, so it’s saying goodbye to them. SmartMoney points out that ultimately this shouldn’t matter for students taking out new loans, since the original point of consolidation—converting lots of variable rate loans into a nice predictable fixed rate loan—is no longer relevant (all federal student loans are now disbursed with fixed interest rates.) SmartMoney says if you still have variable rate loans you need/want to consolidate, check out the government’s consolidation offering—”You’re likely to pay the same consolidation rates you’d pay if you did so with Sallie Mae,” they write.
